Which would you choose? New ZL1 or new GT350?

[Serpent]

Saw one of these in santa cruz:

The car looks bad ass, pictures dont do it justice because I too thought it looked like shit, till i saw it in person. the GT350 looks even more bad ass.

The S550 just looks great in every angle. The only thing the camaro has is more power, easy mods to make even more.
You guys cant really say which handles better. I just looked at the specs of a ZL1 and a GT350
Front tires are wider on the GT350, 285 vs 295
both use two piece rotors, but GT350 is drilled, ZL1 is solid. Also im not sure if the back is two piece rotors for the ZL1, GT350 is two piece all around. Finally the GT350 weighs at least 100lbs lighter.

Tough choice really, too bad you cant test drive a GT350, maybe find a local owner and ask for a ride.

 

[svtfocus2cobra]

I'm going for the GT350 for the sole fact ot revs to 8200. I would also twin turbo it as my buddy Matt @ TMS just finished one this week and it made 620whp on 7lbs and still keeping the 8k redline. That just sounds perfect to me for some reason.

Sent from my SM-G935P using the svtperformance.com mobile app

 

[Brutal Metal]

I'd like to use all 3 for a week apiece as a daily driver then I'll give an honest opinion.. OK Dealerships I'm READY!!

 

[Brutal Metal]

What a world we live in where someone could say that, and I think....Ok yeah I see where youre coming from.

600+ HP stock sports cars the norm. Meanwhile 10-15 years ago 600 who would have you pretty much mopping up everyone.

Yeah I know huh? What about all those chumps driving around in $1000 Saturns and Honda's, I'd say the GT350 is a little step above those...

 

[Entrenched]

Owned a GT350, driven a ZL1. Get the latter. GT350 power curve on the street sucks. At the track it would be awesome.

If the GT500 comes out with the suspension of the GT350 and 650+ HP Ford will have a monster on their hands and I'll be back in a mustang again. (I'd still keep the Z)

 

[IamRacerX]

Saw one of these in santa cruz:

The car looks bad ass, pictures dont do it justice because I too thought it looked like shit, till i saw it in person. the GT350 looks even more bad ass.

The S550 just looks great in every angle. The only thing the camaro has is more power, easy mods to make even more.
You guys cant really say which handles better. I just looked at the specs of a ZL1 and a GT350
Front tires are wider on the GT350, 285 vs 295
both use two piece rotors, but GT350 is drilled, ZL1 is solid. Also im not sure if the back is two piece rotors for the ZL1, GT350 is two piece all around. Finally the GT350 weighs at least 100lbs lighter.

Tough choice really, too bad you cant test drive a GT350, maybe find a local owner and ask for a ride.

The looks of the two cars are subjective to the individual. I am not a fan of the S550 Mustang styling at all. Yes the GT350 looks better than the standard GT, but it's still not great. The Camaro isn't necessarily better looking either, but no worse. The interior of the Mustang blows away the Camaro for sure though.

Owned a GT350, driven a ZL1. Get the latter. GT350 power curve on the street sucks. At the track it would be awesome.

If the GT500 comes out with the suspension of the GT350 and 650+ HP Ford will have a monster on their hands and I'll be back in a mustang again. (I'd still keep the Z)

This! When I drove a GT350 I was shocked how little torque it had at low rpm. The car needs shorter gearing for sure....

 

[GT Premi]

It's not that bad. I thought I'd be disappointed in the torque, too, but turns out it doesn't bother me. It's nice to be able to drop the hammer and not be worried about fishtailing all over the place. I love my GT500 to death, but it gets annoying sometimes to not be able to have any traction beyond 1/4 throttle in the first three gears.

The power delivery in my R reminds me of an E90 M3. There's not a powerful thrust of power, but you look down at the speedometer and realize you're going faster than you think. It's not remotely as quick as my GT500, but it's not disappointing.

Sent from my BlackBerry. The blacker the 'Berry, the sweeter the use!

 

[phoenix64]

Saw one of these in santa cruz:
I just looked at the specs of a ZL1 and a GT350
Front tires are wider on the GT350, 285 vs 295
both use two piece rotors, but GT350 is drilled, ZL1 is solid.

You'd think that but...
The Zl1 tires are 285 (10.8in wide), and they are significantly wider than the gt350 295's(10.0in).
The GT350 tires are very narrow for a 295.
You absolutely can not trust tire manufactures anymore, when every performance car has "bespoke" tires what's written on the sidewall is utterly meaningless.

Owned a GT350, driven a ZL1. Get the latter. GT350 power curve on the street sucks. At the track it would be awesome.

If the GT500 comes out with the suspension of the GT350 and 650+ HP Ford will have a monster on their hands and I'll be back in a mustang again. (I'd still keep the Z)

A base 2011 GT is a match for a gt350 up to about 5k RPM, and below 3500 rpm it murders it. I love the gt350, but the extras 200lbs, and loss of 50+lbft of low end torque annoys the hell out of me on the street.

 

[snakecharmer]

No contest, the ZL1. At least until the Z/28 comes out.

 

[Tom's_03SVT]

No contest, the ZL1. At least until the Z/28 comes out.

As of now, they aren't building one. You get the ZL1/1LE instead.

 

[cam346]

that's what i said earlier. the gt350 is more track than, around town. where the zl1 has down low torque. and power up top.

 

[ssj4sadie]

Definitely do that. I was lucky enough to come across a dealer that had a used one on their lot. Manager came out himself and asked if I wanted to drive it. Couldnt believe it. Got to take if for a spin and to me, it is THE best handling car I have ever drove (have not driven a 6g 1le ss or zl1 yet). It felt like what I imagine a Porsche GT3 RS would feel like. Almost bought it, but unfortunately even on a used one, they still had it marked up 5k+ over sticker.

This was when I was driving my 5g 1le ss (which was another badass handling machine).

View attachment 85409

**** Red McCombs Ford.

As a daily I couldn't do any of the 3. 6'2" with a jacked up knee is still hell getting into my stock height 98 GT.

 

[ON D BIT]

Owned a GT350, driven a ZL1. Get the latter. GT350 power curve on the street sucks. At the track it would be awesome.

If the GT500 comes out with the suspension of the GT350 and 650+ HP Ford will have a monster on their hands and I'll be back in a mustang again. (I'd still keep the Z)

The power curve is good. The weight sucks. Take 500lbs from it....

 

[tones_RS3]

GT350 power curve on the street sucks. At the track it would be awesome.

I've been reading that a lot. Owners looking for more power.

 

[IamRacerX]

It's not that bad. I thought I'd be disappointed in the torque, too, but turns out it doesn't bother me. It's nice to be able to drop the hammer and not be worried about fishtailing all over the place. I love my GT500 to death, but it gets annoying sometimes to not be able to have any traction beyond 1/4 throttle in the first three gears.

The power delivery in my R reminds me of an E90 M3. There's not a powerful thrust of power, but you look down at the speedometer and realize you're going faster than you think. It's not remotely as quick as my GT500, but it's not disappointing!

Here's the thing imo... Tell me if you agree. The Gt350 ends up revving each gear to 5k in regular driving to feel the torque.... With a ZL1, Hellcat, or Z06 you can thrust to 2500 and feel the surge of torque... Don't get me wrong, it can be fun revving gears even on the street in spirited driving.... But the gearing in the Gt350 is too tall in first to feel the pull until you rev it pretty high.... Again, once up top it pulls nicely! But down low... It just need a lower gear.... It's part of the FPC setup... I still think I would pick it over the ZL1... Especially an R!

 

[GT Premi]

I suppose. The first 5K RPM goes by so quickly, though, even in normal driving, that I've never really paid much attention to when the feel of torque comes in. I have noticed that it will bog sometimes, if I don't rev it out enough in the previous gear. The Voodoo likes revs. The "fun" doesn't begin until 3500 RPM. Then you just surf the wave up to 8250. (8000, if the oil hasn't reached 200*yet.)

It's been known from the beginning that the Voodoo produces a piddling amount of torque. (What an automotive time we live in when 429 lb-ft can be considered piddling!) If a driver is looking for a car that is going to shove him into his seat, the GT350(R) is not for him. The ZL1 (or a Hellcat) will be a much better choice for that driver. I can't speak on the standard GT350, but if he's looking for a car that almost telepathically goes where you want it when you want it to, the GT350R is it. It will cut toward an apex like a fox chasing a rabbit, and sticks to the road like Velcro. It behaves like no car its size and weight has a right to.

Back to the engine, though. The Voodoo was designed to give that precise, surgical power delivery. A driver can confidently get on the power sooner coming out of turns without worrying about spitting himself out backwards. With my GT500, it handles great, now that the suspension has been heavily modified. But playing with the throttle in turns is like playing Russian Roulette with five bullets in the gun. It's more likely than not to come out backwards, sideways or fishtailing, if I tap the throttle at the wrong moment. The tip-in is like a hair trigger sometimes. That can be fun for a little while, but it quickly becomes annoying. Not to mention it does nothing to help the tire budget.

Smokey burnouts and tire squealing have their place, but it's much more fun to be able to shoot-and-scoot on the road or track. That reminds me of the Motor Week ZL1 track test I posted in Pics and Vids. If you watch that track video of the ZL1, you'll notice it has a very aggressive stability control program. It absolutely punishes its tires. If a ZL1 driver hits the track and turns the nannies all the way off, he's probably going to be all over the place. If he leaves them on, he's going to have a tough time keeping up with an R in the corners. (That's probably why Chevy dropped the ZL1 1LE bomb on us.) The GT350R can go into and come out of corners hard with little fuss.

Still, on paper, the new ZL1 is a fantastic car. I think it looks badass all around, except for the back. I wouldn't mind having one. It was, and kind of still is, on my shopping list. I'm holding out to see if Ford is going to offer up a new GT500. They've been holding their cards real close to their vests lately, but damn. Not even a hint of speculation on a GT500?? Usually, Mustang news is their worst kept secret. Look at the Bullitt "leaks".

 

[50 Deep]

I came to the buffet to eat. Where are the pics and videos?

 

[fangstang]

Heres some pics for you.

 

[Serpent]

Not a fan of stripes but this looks just right:

Imo, all its missing is the R wing, and im not a fan of wings either...lol

 

[Pribilof]

I don't like the Camaro interior at all but I still picked it over the 350. I think it says a lot that only 39% of poll voters on a Ford site picked the Ford over the Chevy.

Significantly more power and roughly equivalent handling in the ZL1.

Let's face it, we aren't Randy doing hot laps all day. Low end torque beats high end HP all day on the street for daily driving.